Database: Yagyū Munetoshi

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Yagyū Munetoshi is celebrated as a master swordsman and the founder of the Shinkage-ryū school of swordsmanship, which became the official school of the early Tokugawa shoguns. Although the family claimed descent from Heian aristocracy, possibly the Taira, the earliest records of the Yagyū date back to the 14th century when they fought for Emperor Go-Daigo and the Southern Court. At that time, they were granted the village of Yagyū in Yamato as a fief, from which they took their name. By the 15th century, the Yagyū were minor, relatively unknown warriors.

The clan's rise began in the latter half of the 16th century. When Matsunaga Hisahide invaded Yamato in 1559, Yagyū Muneyoshi entered his service, becoming one of Hisahide's principal generals as Hisahide allied with Oda Nobunaga. However, Munetoshi's influence waned when Matsunaga Hisahide was defeated in 1577 during a conflict with Nobunaga, leading to his fall from favor. Despite this setback, Munetoshi's reputation as a swordsman grew, particularly after his encounter with the master swordsman Kamiizumi Nobutsuna. Nobutsuna made Munetoshi his principal disciple and granted him the permission to teach the newly founded Shinkage-ryū school.

In 1594, Munetoshi met Tokugawa Ieyasu and demonstrated his swordsmanship. Although Ieyasu wished to employ him as a sword master, the 66-year-old Munetoshi declined and instead recommended his son, Yagyū Munenori, as an instructor. Consequently, the Yagyū's Shinkage-ryū became the most renowned school of swordsmanship in Japan at the beginning of the 17th century.